CLEARWATER, Fla. – The University of Notre Dame scored quick, but the No. 15/18 Tennessee Volunteers answered back to hand the Irish their first loss of the season at the St. Pete Clearwater Elite Invitational Presented by Wilson. The 11-3 defeat is the first of the season for Notre Dame who is now 5-1 on the year. Tennessee improves to 5-0 with the win.
Alexis Holloway started in the circle and couldn’t quite find a groove. The graduate student suffered the loss, throwing 1.2 innings, allowing eight hits, seven earned runs and struck out two. Shannon Becker came on in relief, throwing 4.0 innings, allowing six hits, four unearned runs and struck out four.
The Notre Dame offense earned three hits in the contest. Emma Clark had an RBI single, Leea Hanks started a two-out rally with a double and Karina Gaskins drove in a pair with a home run.
Notre Dame scored in the first inning for the fifth time this season. With two outs, Hanks doubled to left center and scored when Gaskins lifted her second home run of the year over the wall in right center.
Tennessee rallied in their bottom of the inning to take a 5-2 lead. The Lady Vols scored five on six hits to take the early lead at 5-2.
The Irish scratched a run home in the top of the second. Quinn Biggio was hit by a pitch and moved into scoring position following a walk and a hit batter. Clark roped a single back up the middle to bring in a run and cut the lead down to 5-3, Tennessee.
The Lady Volunteers added a pair of runs in the bottom of the second on a two-run homer to extend the lead to 7-3.
Becker escaped a bases loaded with no outs situation in the bottom of the fifth. An error turned the Lady Volunteer lineup over and Becker got a lineout, a strikeout and a ground out to keep them loaded and the deficit still at 7-3.
Up Next
The Irish play again this evening as they take on the Wisconsin Badgers at 6:30 p.m.